BJP MP Baghpat says don't exhibit fear over Jats, reminds Muzzafarnagar blot

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Published : Jan 28, 2022, 9:15 PM IST

Does not prove fear says Baghpat BJP MP on party cozying up with Jats ahead of UP assembly polls

The BJP, in its final pre-poll campaigns, has been hitting Western Uttar Pradesh hard. Attempting to connect with the masses, the BJP leadership in the region are dealing with the added challenge of an ‘anti-Jat’ or ‘anti-farmer’ perception of the party at the ground level. BJP MP from Baghpat, Dr Satyapal Singh, however, says that no one in the Jat community is angry at the BJP, writes Anamika Ratna for ETV Bharat.

New Delhi: The BJP, in its final pre-poll campaigns, has been hitting Western Uttar Pradesh hard. Attempting to connect with the masses, the BJP leadership in the region are dealing with the added challenge of an ‘anti-Jat’ or ‘anti-farmer’ perception of the party at the ground level.

The BJPs urgency in this regard is clearly visible, whether it surfaces through party workers holding meetings with members of the Jat community, or Home Minister Amit Shah visiting Mathura and Greater Noida twice in the span of a week.

The urgency arises largely from the long-drawn farmers protests in the recent past, which ended with the Centre repealing the three farm laws, and the major roles played by the Jat community in the agitations.

Speaking to ETV Bharat, however, BJP MP from Baghpat Dr Satyapal Singh said that he does not believe the community is necessarily angry with the BJP government.

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“No person or leader from the Jat community are angry with the BJP. This is not the first time that the party is meeting Jats, it has met with several communities before this. This does not prove any kind of fear”, Singh opines.

The BJP leaders words, however, are sharply contrasted by the tactics employed by the party ahead of assembly elections.

As per information, the party has employed the two-pronged tactic of displaying development under the BJP, as well as reminding the Jats about dark blots in the region's recent history, including the Muzaffarnagar and Kairana riots.

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“The events that took place in Muzaffarnagar and Kairana back in 2013 are remembered by all. No one will make the mistake of moving towards the SP-RLD alliance again”, Singh noted.

On the flipside, it is learnt that in Jat-dominated areas of Western Uttar Pradesh, BJP leaders out on poll campaigns are relaying it to the public that if they do not vote for the BJP, the constant flow of development will stop, and that the state would regress at least 20 years.

This was accentuated by Union Home Minister Amit Shah's recent speech in Greater Noida, where he said “The upcoming election is not for deciding an MLA, Minister or Chief Minister, but is being fought for the future of Uttar Pradesh for the next 20 years”.

“20 years ago, Uttar Pradesh was ruled by mafias and no one wanted to invest in the state. Cases were not even registered against the mafia, and criminals belonging to one community were left to roam openly. If that's what you want, then again vote for any party other than BJP”, Shah had further said.

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The party is further promoting work done in the state under Yogi Adityanath government, such as Delhi Meerut Highway, Delhi Yamuna Expressway, and Jewar International Airport. Rally cries are simultaneously being made to increase this streak of development for another five years.

In the agricultural sector, this has led to BJP referring constantly to their pro-farmer moves in the state during the campaign, such as loan waiver for sugarcane farmers, and the withdrawal of the farm laws.

In the first two phases, about 100 seats in Western Uttar Pradesh will go to polls. Significantly, about 76% of these seats were won by the BJP in 2017 assembly elections. The changed circumstances after the farmers protest, however, have also changed the equations in the state, with the ruling party proceeding towards damage control.

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